


Star Wars | The Balance Reborn

by constellatious



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Jedi Academy (Star Wars), Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Empress Rey, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Force Bond (Star Wars), Jedi, M/M, Married Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Parents Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Post-Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Redeemed Ben Solo, Reylo - Freeform, Star Wars - Freeform, Stormpilot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-03-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:27:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22872475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/constellatious/pseuds/constellatious
Summary: Set 15 years after the start of the Battle of Exegol, Rey has risen as the Empress of the new Galactic Democracy. Alongside Ben, she trains the next band of Jedi, this time using teachings from both the dark side and the light side.The Republic Empire has done well for the past years, slowly convincing the planets to join their ranks and start towards a working, civilized system. But there are several planets who oppose the new system and the rule of the Jedi.The rise of the Insurgency threatens the development of the Galactic Democracy and Rey's entire plan. She hopes, with the help of her companions, she can put an end to the rebels and a start to a galaxy of peace. . .
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Finn, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 3
Kudos: 10





	1. The Empress Rises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UPDATES EVERY SUNDAY
> 
> a/n : the first chapter is set during the battle of exegol, with an alternate ending to tros. each chapter onward will be set fifteen years later.

The lightsaber vibrated gently within her grasp. The warm, blue glow it emitted was crackling and popping to the side of her face. Rey had two choices. She could kill her grandfather, Emperor Palpatine, and take over his throne. Or she could kill him but remain on the light side of the force. Either way, he would be dead and Rey would be left with no family, again. That was probably the worst part. Not having any family. Again. 

Her gaze shifted from the decaying face of the Emperor to the soft, determined face of Ben. She was wrong. She had family. She had Ben. He held the lightsaber in his hand, almost mirroring her stance. They were the same, a dyad in the force.

She could hear his voice echoing through her mind. _Rey. . . I want you to join me. We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy._ She wanted so desperately to take his hand.

But she could hear Palpatine within her mind as well. _You will take the throne. It is your birthright, to rule, here. It is in your blood. Our blood._ Rey knew if she killed the Emperor in cold blood by herself, that he would become within her.

So she had two choices. Kill the emperor in cold blood and rule the galaxy by herself. Kill the emperor with Ben and rule together. There was no debate. The second option was the obvious one.

Rey clutched her lightsaber in her left hand while Ben held his in his right hand. Outstretching her open hand, Rey carefully took Ben’s other open hand. He looked up, meeting her eyes, at first confusion, but that slowly faded away to satisfaction. She let out a shallow breath. “Together, Ben,” she said, tightening her grip. “We’ll rule the galaxy together.”

The menacing cackle of the Emperor disrupted the moment between them. “My young granddaughter. There is no one fit to rule but us. Kill me now so I can give you the strength of the entire Sith.” She could feel the strength of him seeping into her but she couldn’t do it alone. She couldn’t. “You think there’s something special between you two? It was all manipulation, Rey,” Palpatine choked. 

“No,” Rey said. “I will not kill you in cold blood.”

Emperor Palpatine’s gaze hardened. “Then you’ll die.”

Ben met Rey’s eyes, his heart pounding within his chest. His face was stern but from behind his eyes, Rey could sense a lightness growing within him. “Together?” he muttered.

“Together.”

The Emperor let out another cackle before raising his hands and sending a sea of electricity from his fingertips. With almost a telepathic connection, Rey and Ben leapt forward at the same time, their physical connection breaking as they held their lightsabers with two hands. Rey threw her lightsaber up first, pushing on the electricity and inching closer. Sweat began to form along her brow and her breathing became weaker and weaker as she used all of her strength. 

“You are a foolish girl, Rey,” said the Emperor as he sent even more electricity towards her saber. “You are nobody. Your parents were nobodies. You have nobody!”

“She has me!” Ben bellowed. He threw his lightsaber up, connecting with Rey’s. Forming an X with the crackling swords, they pushed forward, shortening the distance between them and the Emperor. 

Ben knew the Emperor was getting tired. He was using all of his strength, but it still wasn’t enough. “Two Jedi cannot beat all the power of the Sith!” Palpatine yelled.

Rey deepened her stance. “We are not two Jedi,” she started. 

Ben tightened the grip on his lightsaber. “We are all the Jedi,” he finished.

With one final step forward, the two gave all their power to the lightsabers connection. The blue electricity, which was once firing only towards them, turned, and began attacking its master. Palpatine scorched in pain as the electricity from his own fingertips ate away at his old skin. He seemed to decay in front of them. The lightning began to emerge itself from within the Emperor’s body, making him fall apart like glass.  
Again, with the connection between them, Rey and Ben gave the lightsabers all of their strength. With one giant beam of light, there was a force that exploded throughout Exegol. The cloak the Emperor was wearing fell to the floor as Rey and Ben did. 

It was silent once again, the only noises being the distant fighting about. It was peaceful. The two dyads on the ground, their lightsabers off and to the side, gently breathing. They were weak. All of the power used to defeat Palaptine had weakened them so much that most of their strength was diminished.

Their hands were so close. Close to touching and being one with the force. Ben moved his neck gently, enough to barely make out Rey in the shifting darkness. Her hand twitched with the bit of life she had left. Using the last of his dying strength, Ben reached out his hand, just enough for their fingers to touch.

It was like life itself bloomed within them. The light in both of them connected, growing stronger and stronger, but it wasn’t enough. Ben closed his eyes hard, his mind racing. He could feel Rey’s thought. It was distant, but it was there. _Be with me. Be with me. Be with me._ She was calling out to the Jedi before her. Ben trusted her judgement. He let his own thoughts echo hers, calling out to any Jedi who would listen. 

That’s when he heard them. He didn’t recognize any of them but they were there. They were helping to give strength and power to the two. Rey could feel her heart starting to beat faster and Ben’s breath moved from shallow to full. Then there was that voice. The one voice they knew so well. _Rise. Rise and save the galaxy._ It was Luke Skywalker. He poured all of his strength into them. Ben and Rey knew that they would rule together. They would bring a new order to a galaxy, just as Ben had prophesied. 

Rey’s eyes shot open. She gasped for air, her bones aching and her head pounding. Positioning her hands to her side, she lifted herself to her feet. Ben was beside her, eyes closed, seeming almost peaceful in a deep sleep. “Ben,” she croaked, her voice hoarse. He didn’t move. She could feel the lump rising in her throat. Holding back tears, she dragged herself closer to him, holding his head in her arms. “Ben, please,” Rey whispered. “I need you.”

The sound of Rey’s voice was so distant underneath the voices of the Jedi, but Ben still heard it. _Rise, Ben. You turned for you, now show it_ . That voice. Ben knew that voice. He knew that voice without ever hearing that voice. _I didn’t get too._ Anakin Skywalker. The first time his grandfather reached out over the countless years Ben had been trying to get his attention. A surge of emotion flooded Ben and a single tear streamed down his dirty cheek. Rey watched it fall, using one delicate finger to wipe it from his face.

Ben’s eyes opened. Slowly, but with strength. Still weak, he was limp in Rey’s arms. She lifted him up closer, so their faces were side by side. They look at each other, deeply. It was a surge of power almost. The Force carefully winding throughout them, reaching to every square inch. Their hearts beat in unison, as one. Rey placed her hands on his hand, holding his sunken cheeks in her palms. “Ben,” she breathed. Her eyes started to swell up with tears, only they were tears of happiness. The smile that appeared on her face was bright and loving.

She leaned forward until their lips met and it was like the entire Force shot out of them. 

✴ ✴ ✴

“So what, you’re like the Empress now?” Poe asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

The Millennium Falcon seemed like the best place to be to talk in light of the recent events. They were already back on Ajan Kloss, but Rey insisted they all meet up and discuss instead of celebrating with the rest of the Resistance. “I don’t, um. . . I don’t know,” she responded, her gaze shifting to the table.

Ben huffed. “She’s the Empress of the galaxy now. She’s going to pick up where the New Republic left off and make it the New Empire.”

“We don’t have to listen to anything he says, right?” Finn said, never letting his focus shift to the previous Supreme Leader. 

“Finn,” Rey sighed. “Ben, I haven’t decided anything yet.”

“But we talked about this,” Ben whispered. “We’re ruling together.”

“No, Ben, I said I haven’t decided anything yet.”

Rose shifted her weight very subtly. “What do you mean, ‘rule together’?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowing gently. 

Rey let out a shaky breath. “Someone has to do it.”

A scoff was heard from Finn, who was obviously not approving of this plan at all. “And it has to be you?”

“Who else is going too?” Ben answered.

“Yup, we definitely don’t have to listen to anything he says,” said Poe. 

The air in the ship was tense, the unease almost tangible. Rey didn’t want to rule and lead everyone to destruction as the two previous systems had. And she knew Ben didn’t want to rule either. He wanted to be a pilot. It was all a facade it was putting on. However, Rey knew if she didn’t have some control over the new system, it could fall to pieces. All she wanted was a peaceful place for everyone.

“I have an idea,” Rey started. “But I don’t know how well it will work.”

Finn smiled softly at her, his gaze friendly. “We wanna hear it.”

“They’ll be a New Republic Empire, only it’s nothing like the New Empire. It’s a combination of all the good parts of the New Empire, the Old Republic, and the New Republic. They’ll be an Emperor or Empress, voted on by the people. They will have the highest authority but with a check and balance, they won’t have full control over the galaxy. Each habitable planet in the galaxy will have their own council, with their own chancellor who will represent them in galaxy meetings. Every eight years there will be re-elections for the Emperor or Empress and every five years will be re-elections for the chancellor and senators. 

“I want to set up a Jedi Academy as well. Travel t0 each of the different planets and recruit anyone who has the force. But I don’t want it to be just the light side. It’s going to have balance. The teachings of the light side and the dark side will be given—”

Poe stood up quickly, cutting Rey off. “You want to teach five-year-olds how to use to the dark side, Rey?” he said in disbelief. “Are you insane?”

“If you would let me finish,” Rey replied calmly. “The dark side is not all bad. I’ve read the sacred readings of the Jedi. You need to have balance and you can’t have balance if you are only learning the light side. It will work, Poe.”

Rey stopped, her sentence trailing off because she didn’t even seem sure herself. Ben tightened his grip on her hand. He knew that her plan was the smartest thing to do for the galaxy right now. “Go on,” urged Ben. She nodded slowly, letting out another breath.

“We need someone strong to rule the galaxy so anyone running for Empress or Emperor will have an advantage of they’re Force-sensitive and trained. The Jedi Council will reappear once again as the personal advisory to the Emperor or Empress. They will weigh on all decisions made. All of you will have a part as well,” said Rey. This earned a confused murmur. “Poe, I want you to fly to each habitable planet, even on the outer rim, and convince them to join the New Empire. Any planet that does not want to join will not be forced. Rose and Finn, you’ll join me in finding some place to set up the capital of the galaxy and the new Jedi Academy. I’m thinking somewhere in the Core Worlds. Ben. . . I want you to fly to each habitable planet, alongside Poe, and recruit any force-sensitive people to train as the new Jedi.”

Poe let out a dismissive laugh. “You really think that’s a good idea?” he asked. “Using the person who almost destroyed the galaxy, join me in recruiting the already apprehensive planets?”

“Poe,” Rey snarled, ready to say something defensive.

Ben held his unoccupied hand up to silence her. “Rey, he’s right,” Ben said. “They’re not going to trust me.”

“I see the good in you. You’ve turned,” said Rey. “You just need to show them what you showed me.”

There was a small silence for a moment with Ben not answering Rey. Rose was the first to break the silence. She said, “I think it’s a really good plan. It just needs to be fully thought out. But it’s a good start.”

A small smile emerged on Rey’s lips. “So, you’ll help me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a/n : if you want to check out the story on another platform, i have also posted it on wattpad under the same name and username.


	2. A Temple of Balance

A stream of orange light flowed through the open window. The beams made their way to the closed eyes of Ben and Rey. They were in each other’s arms, hearts pumping at almost the same rate. Each inhale was together and each exhale was together. It was almost like they were one.

Rey was the first to wake. Her eyes fluttered open and she shifted her weight to face her husband beside her. With his chest rising and falling, he looked very peaceful. She didn’t want to wake him, so carefully and slowly, she pulled herself out of bed and made her way to the open window, admiring the sunrise on the shiny, silver structures. The city-covered planet never slept but the rising sun gave Coruscant a new wave of life. It was peaceful here now after the reign of the failed empires before. Rey felt like the new Republic Empire, which she now named the Galactic Democracy, needed a familiar place to rebuild itself.

It took a while to get the majority of solar systems on board with the new system. Still weary of the old ways of governing for the galaxy, the solar systems were apprehensive about rejoining the starts of a new democracy, especially with the new ruler and her relations to the old Supreme Leader. Eventually, there were only a few solar systems left that separated themselves from the Galactic Democracy. Rey knew that democracy was a slow, grueling process and for the new Democracy to work as well as the Old Republic, she knew it would take time. 

Time was something Rey wished she had more of. The time it took to train the new generation of Jedi proved to exceed the amount of time Rey had to rebuild the democracy within the galaxy. With the Jedi almost extinct, it took scavenging from Ben to all of the planets within the galaxy, even on the outer rim. Most of those recruited were younglings because there were very few Jedi Masters left that still practiced the religion. Luckily, Ben had found several young Jedi Masters willing to dedicate their life to keeping the religion alive. Still, the amount of younglings surpassed the amount of available Jedi able to take on a Padawan, which meant that soon, each Master would be forced to take on two or more Padawans. There was no way the younglings would obtain enough knowledge to become a Jedi Knight whilst training alongside two or more others with only one Master. 

There wasn’t any type of solution present. Training for new Jedi could take countless decades, depending on the species. With only Luke’s journals, Rey founded the new Jedi Academy alongside Ben. With Coruscant as the capital of the galaxy once again, a new Jedi Temple was created, which served as the headquarters for the new Democracy. The close proximity of the two gave an advantage. Due to the planet’s entire surface covered with city, an extension of the academy was built on Chandrila, the birthplace of Ben. Luke provided lots of knowledge within his journals and provided help on where to retrieve any of the old Jedi archives. Ben told Rey that when he was training under Luke, there were about seven others along with him, all training together and all roughly similar in age. If Luke could manage more than five Padawans at a time, there’s no reason why Rey couldn’t. But she couldn’t. She was never properly trained and she was still learning herself. Besides, the Jedi Masters she did have lacked the training Luke received, even if he didn’t get all the training he was supposed to. 

All Rey wanted was to see her daughter grow up to be as strong a Jedi as her grandfather. 

“Mama,” a voice said from the bedroom entrance. Rey’s attention turned from the open window to the youngling standing at her door. A girl, no older than twelve, was adjusting her robe. The tan shade of the clothing paired with her light skin and dark brown hair, which was thrown in a half up half down look with two buns on either side of her head, created a monochromatic look. 

Rey motioned for the youngling to exit in hopes of not waking Ben. She followed after so they were in the open area of their suite. “Are you feeling excited, Myri?” she asked her daughter. 

The girl shook her head. “Nervous, I think.”

Myri was almost an exact replica of her mother. She had the same eyes, nose, cheek bones, eyebrows, as Rey had. The only thing that set her apart from her mother was her hair. A deep shade of brown, her hair was nearly the same color as her father’s, but not quite. Uniquely, Myri had a spray of freckles that coated her nose and upper cheeks. Ben wished there was more of him in Myri, but at the same time, he was grateful enough to have a daughter, one that captured the same beauty he found in Rey. 

“It makes sense you’re nervous,” Rey started. “You’re going to be a Padawan.”

Myri sighed, “I don’t think I’m ready.”

Rey rolled her eyes lovingly and embraced Myri. “Of course you’re ready.” She bent down a bit to maintain eye contact with the younger girl. Already at twelve, Myri showed great potential for passing her mother in height. Ben was happy because maybe his height passed onto her. At least that was something.

The Gathering was today. Rey read about it in Luke journal’s and in the Jedi archives. She also had memories of the lightsaber building from the ancient Jedi texts she read while on Ahch-to. To honor the old Jedi Order and Luke, Rey attempted to replicate the Gathering. Most everything worked out fine. The first Gathering was held about ten years ago, which meant that the first band of Padawan Learners to create their lightsabers were getting ready to take the Jedi Trials, another part of the old Jedi Order that Rey integrated into her new program as well.

“What if I don’t find my kyber crystal?” Myri asked. “Then I don’t become a Padawan which means I won’t become a Jedi which means—”

“What’s going on out here?” asked Ben as he emerged from the bedroom. His jet black hair was messy and falling into his eyes, which he rubbed a bit. Rey knew he wasn’t angry. There was a smile on his face. She hadn’t seen him actually angry since the Battle of Exegol. Ben was always happy and always smiling. He loved being a father and he cherished Myri with all of his being. He embraced his daughter softly then made his way to give Rey a good morning kiss.

“I don’t think I can become a Jedi,” Myri huffed.

Ben gave her a loving look. “And why’s that?”

Myri rolled her eyes. She had her mother’s spunk, that’s for sure. “Because I won’t find my crystal.”

“You’ll find your crystal, Myri,” Ben reassured her. “You need to focus on your mind and use the Force and you will find your crystal. I promise.”

“And what if I don’t?”

“You will,” Rey chimed in. “Now come on, before the rest leave.”

✧ ✧ ✧

The journey to Ilum did not take as much time as Myri thought it would. On the ride there, Rey told the rest of the younglings the meaning of the crystals and how it would be unique to each one of them. Still, Myri was weary she wouldn’t find hers. She had two of the strongest Jedi as her parents, the two who single-handedly destroyed the Sith and the Final Order. Against them, Myri was nothing. She was simply a force-sensitive girl who was over concerned with the idea that she could easily disappoint her parents.

Silas Dameron sat beside Myri on the ride there. He was the perfect combination of his fathers, Poe and Finn. He and his older sister, Gemma, were almost identical, despite being three years apart. The new technology coming out made it possible for Silas and Gemma to be conceived. All that was needed was a carrier. Rose volunteered to be the surrogate mother, as she never wanted to have kids of her own but wanted to know what it was like to be pregnant. It wasn’t intentional for Poe and Finn to have a child at the same time as Rey and Ben, but it worked out. They could all figure out the new galaxy together as well as how to be parents together.

A jostling of the ship signaled the landing about to come. The windows began to frost over as they got closer to the ground. Already, it was starting to get chilly within the cockpit. Over their robes, each youngling had a large, fluffy coat, designed to keep them warm whilst in the Crystal Caves. The shutting down of the ship meant that they had landed. The door opened downwards and the younglings followed Rey into the cold.

It was almost impossible to see where they were going. The blizzard that surrounded them was creating a mask. “How are we supposed to see?” one of the younglings called. Myri could tell by her voice that it was Shak’lefi, a purple-skinner Twi’lek.

“You don’t need to see,” Rey said. Her eyes were closed and she was almost gliding along the icy terrain, not minding the blizzard around her. “The Force will guide you.”

Myri thought that was a stupid answer. Silas did too, because he grunted in annoyance beside her. Still, Myri knew her mother was right because Rey was always right. She closed her eyes for a split second and took a deep breath in, the storm almost attacking her nose. _Use the Force. Use the Force_. Rey could hear Myri’s thoughts subtly, but they were there. She smiled to herself.

Visible from the storm around them, a mountain was appearing. It was extremely tall, the top not even noticeable. Rey stopped in front of it, waiting for the remaining younglings to catch up with her. There were seven of them. This wasn’t all that needed to go, but all that Rey could manage. With Ben wanting to focus more on piloting, it was up to Rey to run the Jedi Academy by herself while also trying to manage running the galaxy. Once the younglings were all present, she started. “Behind this mountain is the entrance to the caves,” she said.

“How do we get in?” Silas asked.

“The Force,” Rey said. It was the essence of the entire thing, using the Force. “Hold your hand up like this and close your eyes. Focus your energy and use the Force to open the entrance.” She held up her own hand to demonstrate. 

All at once, the younglings and Rey focused their Force energy towards the mountain. It didn’t take long for the mountain to tumble down, the entire thing giving way to an opening. Like any other temple, there were large columns along the edge of the circular room. Rey led the rest of the younglings into the opening. They gathered around a circular podium, obvious nerve flowing off of them. 

“In a moment, I will open the entrance to the cave. Each of you will be sent in there at the same time to find your crystal,” Rey said.

“How will we know which one is ours?” one of the youngling asked.

“You will know,” Rey started. “By using the Force and unlocking your mind, you will be shown to your crystal, one only you can see. The light emitted from it will be the color of your lightsaber. You must find your crystal with great haste or the entrance to the caves will close and you’ll be stuck until the next Gathering.”

Raising her hand in the air, the top of the mountain opened, exposing the vibrant sun and sending the radiant beams towards the structures. It bounced off the gold cylinders until it reached the ice door. In almost an instant, the ice door began to melt until it gave way to the Crystal Cave. 

“You have until sundown to find your crystal or you’ll be trapped,” Rey told the younglings. “May the Force be with you.”

Myri was the first to run into the cave. She couldn’t risk not finding her crystal and being trapped within the iced walls. It was tunnels among tunnels among tunnels of just ice. Myri had no idea how she was supposed to find her crystal at all. Most of the other younglings had gone their own separate ways, but Silas was trailing behind Myri at a reasonable distance. She was getting sick of him following her. 

Turning around, she said, “Why don’t you go off in another direction? I can’t find my crystal if you trail me the whole time.” She didn’t mean it to sound rude, and it didn’t. It was more, ‘Let me be on my own’. 

“I can’t,” Silas said, catching up to Myri. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“I don’t know what I’m doing, either, Silas.”

He shook his head. “You have a good idea. You have parents who know the Force. I don’t,” began Silas. “I can’t just ask my dads questions I have about the Force. They can’t tell me about the Jedi lore or advise me in the right way to build my lightsaber or if my combat form isn’t up to standards. You do.”

Myri let out a small breath, which was visible and smoke-like in front of her. “Use the Force, Silas,” she said. It was the only thing she could think so say. She barely knew what she was doing either and her parents weren’t the best help. Especially her mother. Rey had to learn how to be a Jedi almost exclusively by herself, in which she told Myri helped her become the Jedi she is today. Myri didn’t get to ask many questions. She had to figure it out, the same way her mother and father did. But she wasn’t going to tell that to Silas.

“I don’t know how,” Silas groaned.

“You do,” said Myri. “Just trust yourself and your mind.”

They started walking, again together. The tunnel they were in soon opened up into a large opening, giving way to several more tunnels on each side. “Which one?” Myri asked herself under her breath.

She didn’t have time to ask Silas before he started towards one of the tunnels. “Where are you going?”

He turned around to face her, his entire expression full of amazement. “There’s a green light down there. Don’t you see it?”

Moving to his side, Myri looked down the same exact tunnel that Silas was. There was nothing there but the same ice structures as the rest of the tunnels. “I don’t see anything.”

“What does that mean?” Silas questioned.

“It means you found your crystal, Silas.” She watched as Silas ran down the tunnel, towards the light she couldn’t see herself. Green and blue. That’s the light she had to find. Any sort of glow meant that it was her crystal.

Myri decided to go down one of the tunnels. It felt like she was walking for hours, but she knew there was no way. As she kept walking, an ice wall began appearing. A dead end. She let out an annoyed ugh and walked back to the opening. This time, she went down the next tunnel over. Again, an ice wall appeared at the very end, marking another dead end. Myri was confused. How could there be this many dead ends? She went back to the opening and went down the next tunnel over, the same one Silas went into. Another dead end. Determined not to find another dead end, Myri went back to the opening and started down the tunnel that led her and Silas to it. Somehow, that one ended up with an ice wall at the end as well.

“That’s impossible,” Myri said to herself. 

Getting overwhelmed by the continuous failures, she explored each of the available tunnels. All of them were blocked. She was trapped. Myri began to panic. She plopped herself down in the middle of the opening, all of the tunnels surrounding her, bellowing at her like the failure she was. From choking back tears during the entire excursion, Myri let them release from her eyes. They streamed down her cheeks, making her face cold as they cooled down. 

She was starting to convince herself there was nothing else and she would be trapped in here forever. _I’m such a disappointment. I will never be Ben Skywalker. I will never be Rey Skywalker. I’m a failure, I’m barely a Jedi._ These phrases played in her head, over and over again. 

Then, her father’s voice appeared in her head. _You are my little girl. You are strong and you are going to become an amazing Jedi. I am so proud of you. Never compare yourself to the accomplishments others had no control over._

Her mother’s voice was next. _Open your eyes and your mind. The Force will guide you. You need to trust yourself and your strength. Never compare yourself to anyone, especially not me or your father. You are your own person and you are beautiful._

They were right. She was strong and she shouldn’t compare herself to others or worry about what other people thought. _Use the Force._ Myri thought to herself. Closing her brown eyes, the same as her mother, she focused her mind on finding the crystal with her own strength. Through her eyelids, the black she saw began to transition into an orange glow. She opened her eyes quickly. Above her, in the very center of the opening, an orange crystal emerged from the ice. There it was. Her crystal. 

Raising her hand, she used the Force to unhinge the crystal from the stone ice. It glided down from above her until she could reach up and grab it. Myri eyed it carefully. Never had she seen an orange lightsaber, let alone an orange crystal in person. But there it was in her palm. An orange crystal. 

She placed the crystal within the pocket of her fluffy coat. Even though Myri had tried all of the tunnels and they all led to dead ends, something was telling her to go back the way she came. She headed down the first tunnel until she reached the entrance of the cave. The ice door was closing quickly and there was barely an opening for Myri to get through. Running as fast as she can, she slid under the solidifying door and onto the steps. 

The rest of the younglings had already found their crystals. She was the last one. Silas ran up to Myri and helped her off the ground. “You were in there for so long, we didn’t think you’d make it,” he told her.

She giggled lightly and pulled the orange crystal out of her pocket. “I found it.”

Rey watched as the two made their way down the stairs and towards the group. “Now that you have all found your crystals, the lightsaber building will occur on the ride back to Coruscant. Each of the crystals is a prominent part of the saber and will represent the color of it. The Force will be used to create the framework and failure to do it correctly can result in a faulty lightsaber that you will not be able to remake. The rest will he explained once we board the ship.”

Shak’Lefi led the group out, with Rey staying behind to make sure everyone boarded the ship. Silas and Myri walked side by side but once Rey got closer to them, Silas thought it would be better to leave Myri with her mother.

Rey gave Myri a small side hug. “I’m so proud of you, Myri,” she said.

“I didn’t think I would find it,” Myri admitted. 

“Can I see it? Was it green or blue?” 

“It wasn’t. It’s orange.”

Rey’s heart sunk in her chest. Ilum didn’t produce orange crystals. It only produced green and blue crystals. And besides that, the presence of an orange lightsaber was very rare from what Rey has heard. Her yellow lightsaber was uncommon enough. There was just something about the orange crystal that felt off. Still, Myri seemed happy and Rey wasn’t going to ruin that. 

“Wow,” Rey said, faking a smile. “How incredible. I can't wait to see the final saber.”

Myri boarded the ship, her hand clutching the crystal and a wide smile on her face. She was going to be a Jedi. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PRONUNCIATION
> 
> * Myri (my-ree)  
> * Silas (sigh-lis)  
> * Shak'lefi (shock-leaf-ee)


	3. The Emergence of a Feeling

“Your first mission is the stepping stone to the beginning of your Padawan training,” said Temiri Blagg to Myri. “You must not take it lightly.”

The new Jedi Master was cleaning his lightsaber in the main holding area of the Millennium Falcon. Rey was piloting the ship, with her Padawan, Silas, as her co-pilot. Myri had hoped her mother would train her, but Rey insisted that Temiri take on the training instead. He was picked up from the planet, Cantonica, shortly after the system had agreed to join the Democracy. Ben was in charge of finding force-sensitive children for the next generation of Jedi. Finn had recommended visiting Cantonica because he remembered there being groups of children taken from their original home and sent there. He thought there might’ve been at least a few force-sensitive children. And he was right. Temiri had finished his training only a little bit ago but as the first group of Padawans to graduate from the academy, Rey was short on the number of available Jedi to use as Masters. 

“This is a stupid mission, Master,” Myri said under her breath.

Temiri shook his head and placed a parental hand on her shoulder. “This mission is not stupid, Myri,” he replied. “We are traveling to the outer rim to convince the last of the systems to join the Democracy.”

“I know what we’re doing, I just think it’s stupid.”

There was no way Temiri was going to win the battle, so he shut his mouth. It was silent for a few moments until Silas entered the main holding area. “Master Skywalker says we have reached Ucrium,” the Padawan said. “We’ll be landing now.”

Myri popped up from her seat and grabbed her lightsaber. “I’m ready to fight them off if they don’t join,” she said with a laugh, waving the inactivated handle. 

Her Jedi Master pushed the saber down, signaling her to stop. “That is the way of the Jedi, Myri.”

“I was just kidding,” she replied awkward, shifting her gaze downwards so she wouldn’t have to meet her Master’s disapproving eyes.

“You need to be careful with comments like that,” Temiri told her. His voice was stern but not intimidating enough for a Jedi Master. He was still young and inexperienced but Rey trusted him with training her daughter and he couldn’t let her down. 

The minute the Falcon started jostling, Myri decided replying would not be worth it so she stayed quiet as the ship landed. Rey came out into the main room once it was on the ground and opened the doors.

The planet was nothing like what they expected it to look like. In all directions were mountains as tall as the buildings on Coruscant. The entire planet had a grey scale color scheme. No other color was seen except the four of them on the dark grey ground. It was the same consistency as dirt, yet not the same color. There were plants as well that coated the ground and the mountains. Almost resembling the same plants seen on other planets, the only difference was the color. For such a grey planet, the temperature wasn’t terrible. Warm, but not too warm. 

Rey scoffed. “I’ve never seen a planet with this much grey in all the galaxy.” The others nodded, still transfixed on the terrain. “Let’s go. Follow me.” 

Leading the way, Rey made her way over the mountain in front of them. The climb took forever. The mountains on this planet were extremely tall. On Coruscant, there were elevators to get civilians from floor to floor but there were no elevators here. Even going along the path that had been engraved, the group had no idea when they would see any signs of life. That was until they reached a part in the mountain that circled around instead of up. Almost like a light flipped, the planet’s colors changed. From around the bend of the mountain, an entire city appeared. Standing out among the grey planet was a sea of domes from greens to blues to reds to purples. Every color possible was in this bubble-like city.

“That’s so cool!” Silas gasped, mesmerized by the colorful city.

The group followed the established trail down until they reached the bottom of the mountain. The buildings weren’t as big as Rey would’ve thought but they were big enough. The domes were each a different color and made from what looked like clay blocks. Out of a dark blue one walked a Ucriumiam. A humanoid species, the Ucriumiams had a grey skin tone, grey hair, and colored eyes with two large horns that extended from their head like a bantha. The horns, however, weren’t tan like the banthas, they were colorful. They usually wore colorfilled robes and sparkling jewelry that decorated their horns, necks, hands, etc. This specific Ucriumiam was female and had light green horns striped with an even lighter green. Her eyes were a darker green and she had a string of purple jewels draped from one horn across her forehead to another. Her robe was the same purple as the jewels and filled with all sorts of accessories.

Bowing her head slightly as a welcome, she said, “You are welcomed to Ucrium.” 

Rey returned the bow and gestured for the others to follow. “Thank you. We are very happy to be here.”

“I am Epithil Frezme, leader of Ucriumiams,” she said. “We can help you with what?”

“I am Rey Skywalker, Empress of the Galactic Democracy,” she said. “This is my daughter, Myri Skywalker, her Jedi Master, Temiri Blagg, and my Padawan learner and nephew, Silas Dameron.”

Myri and Silas smiled slightly and Temiri siad, “It’s a pleasure.”

“As you may know, the Galactic Democracy has been rebuilding itself and we would love it if your planet would join us to bring a new order to the galaxy,” Rey explained. “Your planet will provide one senator to the Democracy who will represent you in galactic meetings. You will be present in all decisions made but the final decisions will be decided by the Empress,  _ myself _ , and my cabinet, the Jedi Council.”

Epithil took a moment to ponder the offer. “We don’t get much say,” she asked.

“Well, you do. The senate will provide me with policies and such to look over so your planet will have say within those matters,” Rey said.

“You make final decision.”

Rey took a deep breath. The interrogation was making her uneasy and she wondered if Ucrium would even consider joining the Democracy. “Yes. My Jedi Council and I.”

“Jedi rule galaxy?” asked Epithil.

“Not exactly, but you could say that. I’ve combined all Jedi training together with the dark side and the light side so there is no Sith vs Jedi. I just thought it would be easier to have the guardians be part of the decision making process,” Rey told her.

“There Jedi from each planet in Council?”

The Empress shook her head. “There’s only twelve members maximum on the Jedi Council so not every planet will have a Jedi,” said Rey. “However, if you have any force-sensitive Ucriumiam children, we’d be happy to take them to train in the Force and eventually they can work their way up to the Council.”

The leader of the Ucriumiams nodded, twirling a piece of her light gray hair in her hand, which hung low on her back. “Test our youth,” Epithil demanded, opening her arm to the village. “We join Democracy. We can leave if we want?”

  
Rey took a scroll out of a bag that dangled across her chest. She handed it to Epithil. “We can discuss that when the time comes,” she responded. “Just sign here” Rey pointed to a blank line at the bottom of the now opened scroll and provided a pen. “Master Blagg will assist me with the midi-chlorian tests.”

While exploring the Jedi Archives, Ben had found an old midi-chlorian tester. It had been used back before the Clone Wars. By sampling the blood from a force-sensitive being, the midi-chlorian count could be tested, which would determine the extent the host could detect the Force. On his mission with Poe, Ben had used it on every child he could on the planets they traveled too. He was able to find a decent amount of force-sensitive children but with barely any Jedi Masters and little space available, those with the highest midi-chlorian count (which determined the potential not strength) were taken.

Temiri took the midi-chlorian tester and set off into the city. Myri followed after him. Rey trusted him with the tester. If there were any force-sensitive children on this planet, they would be taken back to the Jedi Academy. With more and more systems joining the Democracy, more and more Jedi would have to be trained. Unlike the past governments of the galaxy, Rey didn’t have clones or droids she could rely on for battles. Jedi had to be their source of army until they could find another resource. Besides, with the Jedi Council being the second highest rank in the Democracy, it would make sense to increase the number of available Jedi.

Most of the planets that Rey had visited on the outer rim and the unknown regions had very few children. Some had no force-sensitive children at all and others could only provide twenty or so, out of the millions they had inhabiting the planet. Rebuilding the Jedi Order with pieces from the light side and the dark side was going to be challenging, Rey knew that. She just hoped it wouldn’t take the time. Even so, Jedi training took time. Time that Rey didn’t have.

Rey turned to Silas. He was still, his face not moving and his breathing slow. He looked as though he was in a daze but there was nothing interesting he could have been looking at. “Silas,” Rey said. He didn’t answer. She shook him a bit and he gasped loudly, like coming out of a dream. His eyes were wide and his breathing became heavy. “Silas? What happened?”

Silas looked up at his Master, his eyes full of terror. “Nothing,” he said. “I just faded out for a moment, I’m sorry Master.”

Still not convinced, Rey’s eyebrows furrowed in concern. “You can tell me.”

“It was nothing, I promise,” Silas said, this time his voice was full of more reassurance. 

Deciding not to push him any further, Rey backed off. She would talk with Poe and Finn instead and see if they had noticed anything different about their son. Leader Frezme gave Rey the signed document back, signaling the joining of the planet to the Democracy.

“I assume you’ll be Ucrium’s sen—” Rey’s words were cut off as a flash of memory occurred within her mind. All at once, the events of that night on Exegol reappeared. She was by herself, in front of her grandfather. Then there was Ben. Then they were side by side with their sabers raised and ready. The old Emperor’s menacing laugh cackled in the back of her mind. An alternative to that night emerged. Rey defeated her grandfather by herself. Ben was gone. She was dead. Then Ben was back, bringing her back. After the kiss, Ben fell in Rey’s hand and the life slipped out of him. Rey could feel it, only this time it felt like it was part of the vision while also part of the present. The cackle echoed throughout once more, hissing phrases Rey could barely understand. She swore she heard  _ The Sith will rise again _ . There was no way that could be true.

With another bright flash, Rey was brought back to reality. She inhaled loudly and sharply, stumbling backwards. Silas jumped over to catch her fall before she tumbled down. That voice sounded so real and so close. But it was gone, for good. Rey and Ben had killed her grandfather together. Besides, there were no Sith after that. With the end of Palpatine came the end of the Sith. No Sith Lord to monitor training.

The vision brought Rey back to first time she was present on Starkiller Base. Created into the planet, Csilla, then imploded into the star, Solo, Starkiller Base was the place Rey felt the strongest pull of the darkside. The death of Han Solo and the duel with Ben, known as Kylo Ren then, was the main reason. The emotions from that day started flooding back to her as well. That was the start of it all. That was the first time she felt the presence of the Sith.

Desperately trying to collect her scattered thoughts, Rey rebalanced herself with the help of her Padawan. “I apologize,” Rey murmured, still in a state of shock. “As I was saying, I assume you’ll be Ucrium’s senator?”

Epithil said, “Yes. I will be.”

“Then we have everything sorted out,” Rey told her. “I will have one of my Jedi Council members contact you with the rest of the Democracy’s information. We look forward to an alliance with your planet.”

Temiri and Myri emerged from the domes. “Master Skywalker,” Temiri started. “The Ucriumiams had almost no children. There were only a few but we only found one within the force-sensitive range.”

From behind one of the colored domes, a young Ucriumiam walked out. She looked roughly the same age as Silas and Myri. Her dark grey hair was just below her chin and her skin complexion was the same light grey as Epithil’s. Her yellow eyes matched the jeweled strings she had wrapped around her navy blue horns. Although they weren’t the same size as her leader’s, the small Ucriumiam’s horns were proportionate to her size. She had on a striped navy blue and yellow robe and a simple yellow rope belt. 

“This is Zehea Cruvzae,” Temiri said. “We measured her midi-chlorian count and it’s somewhere between 12,000 and 14,000.”

Zehea kept her eyes focused on the grey dirt, avoiding any sort of eye contact with Rey, Myri, Temiri, or Silas. For a split second, her gaze moved to meet her leaders. But in the same second, the gaze was broken and she was looking back down at the dirt.

“Thank you, Temiri. We will bring the child along with us,” Rey said, her stomach developing a feeling she could not explain. “We’ve overstayed our gracious welcome. We should go.”

But the feeling inside Rey’s stomach was familiar. The same feeling she had when she first met Ben in the interrogation room. The same feeling she had when she was face to face with Snoke. The same feeling she had when she met her grandfather. And the same feeling she had when Myri presented her orange crystal from Ilum. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A / N 
> 
> \- Temiri is the force-sensitive boy from Episode 8.  
> \- I know that in the sequels Starkiller Base is on Ilum but I wanted to keep the kyber crystal thing so I changed the loction to Csilla, which is another ice-planet similar to Ilum.  
> \- Also I'm super sorry this chapter is so short. The next will be longer I hope.
> 
> PRONUNCIATION
> 
> * Temiri (tem-ih-ree)  
> * Epithil Frezme (ep-ih-thil frez-may)  
> * Ucrium (you-cree-um)  
> * Ucriumiam (you-crim-ee-um)  
> * Zehea Cruvzae (zee-uh cruhv-zay)


End file.
